Iron Ore Mine Landing

People of Earth. I have neglected this site for a long time. But seeing as of today I am once again out of employment it is time to publish the backlog of posts I had planned back in the summer. The first of which is the epic adventure in the Aguamarga Iron Ore Mine Landing.

I have a special relationship with this place. At age six my father took me there for the first time. We went up the side of the hill, through treacherous cliff-side paths ad into perilous tunnels. The best kind of adventure a six year old can have. Since then I have returned often. I think it is because of this place that I am interested in abandoned places and exploration. In a way this post is an "origins" kind of post.

Last summer I decided it was time to take a good camera and finally take some quality pictures of this great spot. I ended up doing better than that I brought my sister who has both a good camera and is a great photographer. This means you get to see my face is some of these pictures. Let us get started in this journey of adventure and self discovery.



I present to you Aguamarga. This quaint little village of the coast of Almeria in Spain has been a vacation spot for my family for years. Almost every summer I come here for two weeks of sunshine, canoeing, snorkeling and general fun times. At this point we have started our climb to the mine landing on the side of a hill on the eastern side of the village.

After getting halfway to the top there is narrow trail with a steep fall into sharp rocks. On this trail there is a bunker; a remnant from the Spanish civil war. To proceed we have to go through it

 
The first photograph of yours truly. If you are wondering why these photographs look way better than the ones on previous posts it's because my sister knows what she is doing.

This picture is taken by me. Inside the bunker. It's pretty cool, you can sit down and see the boats go by in the shade. If you imagine you have a rifle you can feel like a soldier in 1936, waiting in terror for Franco's rebels to come from North Africa.

Right before reaching the mine you have to traverse a thin ledge. It's less dangerous than it looks. This daring woman is my sister.

Here you can appreciate the size of this ledge. It could be worse.

We have reached the ruins. These steps take you some old buildings were the miners would sleep. We will go there later, through a much more dangerous route!

From the side of the hill there are some great views on the Mediterranean Sea. Here my sister took a great picture of some snorkelers.

While Aguamarga is very small by Spanish tourist coast-village standards it still has a fair amount of boat traffic.

Meet my father and cousin in law. The coast line here is perfect for canoeing; there are countless caves and coves to explore with some impressive volcanic rock formations.

This is the main part of the ruin. Railways used to go through those tunnels and workers would dump mineral from above. The carriages would then go to the boats where the mineral was loaded and shipped to other parts of the world.

A close up of the furnace. If my interpretation is correct they used to melt metals in that tower.

The entrance to the tunnels; we will go there shortly.

This is no tunnel

It is a room dug in the side of the cliff. There is a mattress. Maybe someone lives here...

Before we go to the tunnels let's see what is this way.

I remember climbing all the way up as a child and being scared of climbing down. Going up is always easier than going down.

And I disappear.

I come out form another window and I see this. It seems someone has a holiday house here. Nice BBQ.

The inhabitants are not very organised though.

This must be the living room. I might steal their idea one day. Great spot to camp out for free.

Finally we enter the tunnels. They are unstable and have collapsed in many places. My sister looks up one of the holes were workers used to drop mineral into the rail carriages.

We have to go deeper.

It is too narrow from here on. We better escape this way.

The way out

Where we came in.

Climbing to freedom

Lucia follows.

We are out in the open again. This could be a castle. Mines won't look this way now a days.

We need to find a way up.

Lucia leads the way

We reach the top. That round tower was featured in one of the previous pictures form another angle. We need to rush, it won't be light for much longer.

Some tourists on the other side of the ruins

More people, we are not alone here.

"If you stare long into the Abyss, the Abyss stares back at you." 

This pit is very deep.

Old stonework

Lucia waits for me. I am taking too many pictures...

The pizza oven. We are nearing the end of our exploration.

Ruins and the sea

Ruins and the sky

The dessert at nightfall.

An ourangoutang cometh

And we end with a picture of Aguamarga at dusk. This is a really beautiful place. I miss it in these cold winter months.

I hope you enjoyed this entry. I have another set of photographs form last summer. The post will be coming soon. After that I must find new places to explore. I already have a few sports in mind.

Peace.